| "Wake Up Little Susie" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
) | ||||
| Single by The Everly Brothers | ||||
| from the album The Everly Brothers | ||||
| B-side | "Maybe Tomorrow" | |||
| Released | September 2, 1957 | |||
| Recorded | August 16, 1957 | |||
| Genre | Rock and roll, country, rockabilly | |||
| Length | 1:57 | |||
| Label | Cadence | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| The Everly Brothers singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Wake Up Little Susie" is a popular song written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant and published in 1957.
The song is best known in a recording by the Everly Brothers,[1] issued by Cadence Records as catalog number 1337. The Everly Brothers record reached No. 1 on the Billboard Pop chart and the Cash Box Best Selling Records chart, despite having been banned from Boston radio stations for lyrics that, at the time, were considered suggestive, according to a 1986 interview with Don Everly.[2] "Wake Up Little Susie" also spent seven weeks atop the Billboard country chart[3] and got to No. two on the UK Singles Chart. The song was ranked at No. 318 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".[4]
Song premise
The song is written from the point of view of a high school boy to his girlfriend, Susie. In the song, the two go out on a date to a cinema (perhaps a drive-in), only to fall asleep during the movie. They do not wake up until 4 o'clock in the morning, well after her 10 o'clock curfew. They then contemplate the reactions of her parents and their friends. The boy fears that having stayed out so late, their friends and families will assume that they slept together and that in spite of the two of them being perfectly innocent, they've both now lost their good reputations.
Personnel
- Don Everly – vocals, rhythm guitar
- Phil Everly – vocals, rhythm guitar
- Floyd “Lightnin’ Chance – double bass[5]
Charts
- All versions
| Chart (1957–58) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Honor Roll of Hits (Billboard)[6] | 1 |
- The Everly Brothers version
| Chart (1957–58) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK | 2 |
| US Best Sellers in Stores (Billboard)[7] | 1 |
| US C&W Best Sellers in Stores (Billboard)[8] | 1 |
| US Most Played by Jockeys (Billboard)[9] | 1 |
| US Most Played C&W by Jockeys (Billboard)[8] | 1 |
| US Most Played R&B by Jockeys (Billboard)[10] | 1 |
| US R&B Best Sellers in Stores (Billboard)[11] | 1 |
- Simon & Garfunkel version
| Chart (1982) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100[12] | 27 |
Simon & Garfunkel version
| "Wake Up Little Susie" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
) | ||||
| Single by Simon and Garfunkel | ||||
| from the album The Concert in Central Park | ||||
| B-side | "Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard" | |||
| Released | 1982 | |||
| Recorded | September, 1981 | |||
| Genre | Rock and roll, country, rockabilly | |||
| Length | 2:20 | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Simon and Garfunkel singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Simon and Garfunkel have cited the Everly Brothers as strong influences on their own music. Their live version of "Wake Up Little Susie", recorded in the duo's concert in New York's Central Park on September 19, 1981, reached #27 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1982, and is the duo's last Top 40 hit.[13]
During Simon & Garfunkel's "Old Friends" tour in 2003–2004, they performed this song and others in a segment with the Everly Brothers, who toured in support.
Cover versions and parodies
- British skiffle/rock and roll group The Rattlesnakes performed this song according to Barry Gibb. The group evolved into the Bee Gees in 1958.
- Joe Melson on the album Wake Up Little Susie
- In 2008, a part of the song was sung in the bluegrass version of The Raconteurs' "Old Enough", featuring Ricky Skaggs and Ashley Monroe.
- The musical duo Evan and Jaron recorded a version of the song on their album 52 Sundays.
- Grateful Dead played "Wake Up Little Susie" 13 times in their acoustic sets between February and November 1970.[14]
- Donny Osmond on the album The Donny Osmond Album
- David Bowie's "Time" repeats lyrics from "Wake Up Little Susie," contrasting the decadence of the 1970s with the supposed innocence of the 1950s.
- Barry Frank
- Frankie Lymon
- Alvin and the Chipmunks in the 1989 Alvin and the Chipmunks episode "The Legend of Sleeping Brittany".
- Loggins and Messina
- Suzi Quatro
- The Flying Burrito Brothers
- The King Brothers
- Outlaws
- The Rattles
- ApologetiX parodied this song in their 2004 album, Adam Up. The song was called "Wake Up Talitha Cumi".
- Rockapella parodied this song in an episode of Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? as "Look Out, Double Trouble".
Trivia
In the original Trivial Pursuit game this song is the answer to the question, "What Everly Brothers song was banned in Boston?" Don Everly has also reported it was banned in Boston.[2]
In an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show during the 2000 U.S. presidential election, then-Governor George W. Bush named "Wake Up Little Susie" as his favorite song.[15]
"Wake Up Little Susie" was the first single filmmaker David Lynch bought.[16]
See also
- Banned in Boston
- List of Billboard number-one rhythm and blues hits
- List of Billboard number-one singles of 1957
- Billboard year-end top 50 singles of 1957
- List of Cash Box Best Sellers number-one singles of 1957
- List of CHUM number-one singles of 1957
- List of number-one country singles of 1957 (U.S.)
References
- ^ The Everly Brothers interviewed on the Pop Chronicles (1969)
- ^ a b Hurst, Jack (August 3, 1986). "Everly Brothers Again Waking Up Nation To Innocent, Wonderful". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 31, 2014.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 117.
- ^ "500 Greatest Songs of All Time: The Everly Brothers, 'Wake Up Little Susie'". Rolling Stone. April 7, 2011. Retrieved May 31, 2014.
- ^ https://m.youtube.com/watch?fbclid=IwAR3l0wpcV_-1klgKcPLSsps6zb_eat49drUEzamI9MB1rOO4nYYF9Dt3PUI&v=ngtVRhwDzPk
- ^ "Honor Roll of Hits: The Nation's Top Tunes for Survey Week Ending October 19". Billboard: 48. October 28, 1957. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ "Best Sellers in Stores for Survey Week Ending October 5, 1957". Billboard: 40. October 14, 1957. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ a b "C&W Best Sellers in Stores for Survey Week Ending October 26, 1957". Billboard: 40. November 4, 1957. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ "Most Played by Jockeys for Survey Week Ending October 26, 1957". Billboard: 40. November 4, 1957. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ "Most Played R&B by Jockeys for Survey Week Ending October 26". Billboard: 58. November 4, 1957. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ "R&B Best Sellers in Stores for Survey Week Ending October 5". Billboard: 55. October 14, 1957. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ "Simon & Garfunkel Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ "The Setlist Program". Retrieved November 27, 2011.
- ^ "'Oprah' Show Helps Bush Explore His Fallible Side - Chicago Tribune". Articles.chicagotribune.com. 2000-09-20. Retrieved 2012-01-08.
- ^ "Twitter Q&A with @david_lynch and @guardianmusic". guardian.co.uk. July 1, 1973. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
External links
- Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics